The Mavericks
by UnapologeticallyAuthor
Summary: Superhero AU In this world four unlikely heroes emerge to form a team known as the Mavericks - humanity's best chance of survival against the forces of evil (and some grimm occasionally). Different Ideals and tropes will clash, and hilarity will ensue. Rated M just in case. In this story, a vote will be held at the end of each arc for the next one since I have a ton of ideas.
1. Prologue

**A/N: Hey everyone, this is the start of a new Whiterose Bumblebee fic! It may not be everyone's cup of tea; I'm trying something different, but I hope that you'll at least give it a chance. The real first chapter will be uploaded right after this.**

* * *

"Ravager? Is that _my_ energy bar?" Nightshade asked, a look of disbelief on her face.

"No, of course not," Ravager replied, punctuating her sentence with a bite. "Why? Are you going to do something about it?"

"That's it!" Nightshade stomped, fuming. She threw herself at Ravager, who caught her, laughing.

"Calm down, kitty cat," Ravager smiled, holding onto Nightshades arms, so that she wouldn't get scratched.

"Could the two of you shut up or get a room?" White Knight put on a pair of white headphones, which matched her, well, everything.

Putting on those headphones was a mistake. Nightshade and Ravager snuck up on her, bottles of water in hand, and emptied their ammo all over her. The headphones could be replaced - she was rich after all.

"You did not just do that!" White Knight inhaled sharply. She stood up, wet and sputtering and proceeded to chase the other two around the _Dragon's Den_.

 _Can you believe that we weren't such a well oiled team? Yeah, me neither, but it's true. Let me tell you our story, and I'm sure you'll understand._


	2. Origins 1 Homecoming

**A/N: Hey everyone, this is the first chapter in my new whiterose bumblebee fic. I'm shooting for a monthly release, but I'll be uploading whenever I'm finished. It's a little bit weird, but I hope you'll like it. Let me know what you think!**

* * *

 _Hi, my name is Ruby Rose and I'm eighteen years old. On the mean streets of Mistral, they call me Erythra. It means 'The Red Woman' in their language. Oh, and by the way, I'm a superhero._

Ruby squatted on a steel beam suspended by a crane high above a construction site. Word was that there would be a weapons deal here at eight this evening. She had been surveying the area for the last few hours, waiting for someone to appear. Suddenly, her scroll vibrated, telling her that it was a quarter to eight. As if on cue, a man in a beige trenchcoat walked in, flanked by three (sort of) armed guards. One was bald, another was fat, and the last was, well, also fat.

 _You can't see my face underneath the hood, but I'm smiling. I love it when my intel is right._

Ruby dropped down from her perch, landing on the lead gunrunner with her elbow to the base of his skull. From the sickening crunch that came from his spine, she figured that he would need to be in a body cast for a while. That was fine as long as he wasn't dead. She never killed.

The other three men turned on her immediately with their swords drawn. But they were still too slow.

"It's Erythra! Get her!" One of the fat ones yelled in the thick Mistrali tongue.

 _You'd figure that for a group of gunrunners, they'd actually have guns._

Ruby smirked, dodging the men's attacks effortlessly. Her speed semblance gave her a distinct advantage against them. It was like they were moving in slow motion. In a flash of roses and steel, Ruby unsheathed her Crescent Rose scythe, pulling its trigger and slashing deliberately. She used the energy from the gunshot to spin her scythe in a complete arc, sheathing it in a single fluid motion.

 _I know that I don't need to use Crescent Rose, but it scares the bad guys, and I love her to death._

The men looked on in disbelief as their blades shattered, their shards falling to the ground uselessly. It was actually so quiet that she could hear every single shard clinking against the concrete floor.

"Run!" The bald one yelled, trying to make a break for it. The other two followed behind him.

Ruby sighed, wondering why they even tried. She zoomed past them and stood at the gate to the site with her arms folded, her trademark cloak fluttering in the wind. "Sorry boys, it's too late for that. Now I insist that you tell me where these guns were headed. That is unless you want to end up like your friend over there."

They threw themselves to her feet, begging to be spared. "Vale! Vale! The weapons are headed to Vale!" The same fat one said, clutching at the fabric of her cloak.

"Hey! Hands off, do you know how hard it is to get this cleaned discretely?" Ruby asked, nudging at his hand with her boot.

She ran, using a nearby spool of chain to tie up the three. They were the local authorities' problem to deal with. Or they would be, if the police force wasn't so horribly ineffective. On some nights, she felt like she was doing their job for them. And judging by the fact that she had yet to be arrested, she suspected that she was right. It's not like they could catch her if they wanted to anyway.

* * *

Less than an hour later, Ruby found herself jumping out of a plane into Vale from twenty thousand feet above.

 _Here I am with my back to a (figurative) wall, coming back to a city that I only just left. What was it that they always say? All roads lead to home or something, right? I didn't think that I would be back here for a long time._ _Don't get me wrong, I love it, but the last thing that dad asked me to do was protect people. I needed some time away from this city after dad died. And before tonight I figured that my sis had Vale covered, so I moved to Mistral without telling anybody. Three years of my work dropped the Mistrali crime rate dramatically, and I even managed to put most of the big crime bosses behind bars. So a gun deal from Mistral to Vale after months of silence from the gangs . . . that doesn't sit well with me. It's too much of a coincidence to not follow this up._

Ruby soared through the air, feeling her heart jump into her throat. Despite the gravity of the situation, she couldn't help but howl, riding out the adrenaline high that flooded her system. She held her arms to the side, gaining speed. Then, as the ground grew closer, she took the edges of her cape in her hands, spreading her arms outwards. The air caught her, slowing her momentum down considerably.

She landed on the roof of 'From Dust 'Till Dawn' softly, drinking in her surroundings. A wave of nostalgia mixed with sorrow rolled over her like a ton of bricks. So she did the only thing that she could. The thing that she'd been doing for the past three years. She repressed it.

 _The sooner I find these guys, the sooner I can get back to Mistral._

Ruby climbed down the back of the building, into the small space that separated the property from the apartment complex beside it. Piles of trash littered the narrow alley, leaving her with some questions: Why hadn't Yang been keeping this place up? And if she wasn't here, where was she?

Clearing her throat, Ruby spoke the key phrase that would let her into the 'Dragon's Den', her father's old hideout.

"Thus kindly I scatter."

After a short sequence of beeps, a woman's face appeared on the side of the building. The sight almost brought Ruby to her knees; it was her mother, Summer Rose. Except it wasn't. When Ruby first started being a hero, she found out that her father had an AI created after her mother's image called 'Tempest'. It was a sweet tribute, but at any rate, Ruby knew where she got her problems with coping from.

"Voice identification verified: Welcome home, Little Red." The floor opened up, revealing a hidden staircase that led to the Den.

Ruby scowled to herself. She hated that name, Little Red. It made her feel small. She _was_ small, but didn't like being reminded about it. She preferred _Erythra_ anyway.

As Ruby walked into the Den, lights came on, illuminating her old lair. Everything was covered by a thick layer of dust. (Not the magical kind, just regular dust) Nobody had been here for a while. Luckily for Ruby, her father had secretly put trackers into his two children's costumes. At least he thought it was secret. Ruby always knew it was there. Fortunately, that tracker would be useful tonight. If there was going to be a weapons deal here, she was going to need some help.

"Tempest, show me the location of Starlet," she said, walking up to the massive supercomputer, built into the Den's wall.

Starlet was the codename that Yang had used back in the day. Since their father was the Sun Dragon, she decided to become a small star - a starlet.

 _You're probably wondering how a small family from patch could afford this kind of equipment, right? Well long story short, dad saved a very rich, Atlesian woman from being murdered. Her gratitude ran deep, and fortunately, so did her pockets._

"Certainly, Little Red. One moment," The computer flickered on, the image on the screen a map of the city of Vale. A small red dot pinged evenly on Vale's waterfront.

"Enhance."

The map zoomed in towards street level, revealing a decrepit warehouse that was half sunken into the water.

"Ugh. Why can't bad guys ever make deals somewhere nice?" Ruby thought aloud.

"I'm sorry, I don't have the capacity to answer that question," Tempest responded, much to Ruby's annoyance.

She sighed, "Sorry, Tempest, that one was rhetorical." She sighed again. Walking to the waterfront wasn't an option if the deal was going on now. No she was going to have to take a page out of Yang, or rather, Starlet's book. "Tempest, Bumblebee wouldn't happen to still be here, would it?"

Rather than answering her, a still dark corner of the Den was suddenly illuminated. Immaculate against the dust that coated the walls, floor, everywhere, was Yang's prize possession.

Ruby walked up to it and ran her hand along the edges of the gas tank, surprised to find that it was warm. She clenched her other hand.

 _Right. That sister of mine still has time to take care of her bike, but leaves the only thing we have left from dad in the dust? When I find her, the two of us are going to have a talk._

"Tempest, open the garage door please," she said, strapping on Yang's helmet.

The door shuddered open, and Ruby took note of it. She was going to have to oil its chains. _That_ she didn't mind. Throughout most of her childhood, her father went out on missions to fill the void that Summer Rose left when she died. That meant that Yang basically raised her, and that most of the technical maintenance of the Den was attributed to Ruby.

Wind blew against her face and seemingly through her. Bumblebee had kick, that's for sure. She'd never been behind its handlebars to drive it before, but knew it intimately, having built it back up when Yang wrecked it those few times. At this time of night, barely anybody roamed the streets, beside the odd dust dealer, or a drunk, stumbling to keep his footing. It definitely made it easier to get where Ruby needed to be.

If Yang was tracking the gun deal, she was going to need some backup, whether she wanted it or not.

* * *

Another five minutes later and she was in the same exact position that she had been just hours before: crouched on a steel beam, overlooking a weapons deal.

 _This is where Yang's tracker led me, but she isn't here. Where is she?_

Ruby's question was answered almost immediately as an ever familiar mane of golden hair walked through the doorway, her face harder than she'd ever seen it before. She wore a different costume than when they were children; her leather jacket was intact, but instead of a tank top underneath, she had her chest bound with gauze. Ruby smiled, remembering the arguments that Yang had with her dad.

"Yang, you need to wear more than that," he'd said.

"Why? Being more exposed helps me use my semblance," she'd replied.

That shut down his argument. That shut down his argument every time until he didn't even bother trying to change it any more.

"Boss, I checked the perimeter and we're good. The Mistrali should be here soon," she said, walking towards another girl, dressed in a white frilly skirt and feathered scarf.

"Good work," she nodded, crossing her arms. "Roman will be here shortly."

 _Roman? As in Torchwick? Why would Yang be working with that degenerate?_

"Roman will be here now," a man said, walking through the doorway. He wore a black bowler hat, and a dirty, white suit. "So, when did you say the Mistrali would be here, Ravager?" It was Torchwick himself

 _Ravager? Did she change her name too? I'll ask her later. Well this would be as good a time as ever to stop Torchwick._

Ruby jumped down onto the metal floor with a loud clang, standing up tall - as tall as she could. "They won't," She stared defiantly at her older sister, who looked like she just saw a ghost.

Torchwick looked at her with a bemused look on his face. "So nice of you to drop in." He turned to face Yang. "You didn't tell me your ex-partner would be in town.

"I . . . didn't know," she seemed at a loss for words, which was good. Ruby didn't want to think that she hadn't been missed.

"Kill her, Melanie" He commanded.

"Ru - Red?" She whispered, taking a hesitant step forward, her face softening. Then, she shook her head and hardened back up. "Wait! Let me handle this."

It wasn't a question. It was a command.

"Oh, you want me to let you handle her? Yeah right. Kid, I didn't become as successful as I am by doing stupid things."

Ruby readied her scythe. She knew that this girl wouldn't hold back. The lack of remorse in her eyes was a look that she had stared down a hundred times over. She'd never broken her kill rule though, and she didn't plan on doing so tonight.

Melanie rushed forward and feinted with her left foot, then threw a fast hook kick, trying to catch Ruby with the blade on her heel. Ruby cartwheeled backwards, barely dodging her attack. When she regained her balance, she went on the offensive, using her speed to get behind Melanie.

"Mel. Red, stop!" Yang yelled, firing her gauntlets, Ember Celica, beneath her and leaping in between the two combatants. "We can work this out."

"Like hell you can!" Torchwick shouted, aiming his cane at the three girls. "Ravager, you're fired! Melanie, you're going to deal with these two. Then -" he stopped short, his sentence cut off by a wet 'shlunk.' He coughed, blood trickling out of the corners of his mouth, as a short blade protruded from his chest.

A black shadowy figure leapt into the air and through a hole in the ceiling. Ruby was stunned, and by the look of it, so were Yang and Melanie. Ruby wasn't sure what just happened, but she was sure that she needed to catch the figure. Torchwick's death wasn't a loss to the city, and Ruby didn't harbor any love for him, but like all criminals, he'd deserved a proper trial. She would catch the figure so that he or she - whoever it was - wouldn't kill again.

* * *

 **Breaking News: Ravager and Little Red, both former sidekicks of the vigilante known as Sun Dragon have been sighted in pursuit of what appears to be another female. As of yet, the VPD has made no attempts to pursue. More news will follow as it breaks. This is Lisa Lavender for Vale News Network, signing off.**


	3. Origins 2: Sisterhood

**Breaking news: Ravager and Little Red have cornered the mysterious woman in black on a rooftop. The woman seems to have a weapon drawn, and It looks like they're . . . talking to her. More news as it breaks, this is Lisa Lavender for the Vale News Network, signing off.**

* * *

 _I hope Yang doesn't do anything hasty. The last thing we need is for this girl to attack._

"Who are you? And why did you kill Torchwick?" Yang asked, cocking her gauntlets. "I want answers!"

It was too dark to see, but Ruby could've sworn that she saw the girl smile. "Starlet! Look out!" She yelled, reaching forward. But before she could do anything, a sucker punch to the jaw threw her sideways. Dark spots formed in her vision, and she lay sprawled on the ground.

 _Ouch. I haven't been hit like that in two years. How? Where did that come from?_

Ruby lifted her head, just in time, to see Yang being flipped and slammed onto the pavement. Whoever this girl was, she was strong.

Ruby got to her feet and put her hands up defensively. "Look we can-" she started, a scream cutting her off.

"Fight me!" Yang yelled. A crown of flames danced around her head, which wasn't a good thing. An angry Yang was an uncontrollable Yang.

"Much obliged," the girl answered, five of her seemingly appearing out of the shadows.

Yang was taken aback, but stood her ground. She'd taken worse odds and walked away.

"Starlet!" Ruby called out, unsheathing and opening her scythe. "Let me help."

"No!" Yang looked down at her younger sister, her eyes blood red and more angry than Ruby had ever seen. "This one's mine."

The tone in Yang's voice scared Ruby. She stood with her weapon at the ready, but nodded stiffly, knowing better than to try to stop her sister when she got like this.

Yang leapt into the air, spinning and firing Ember Celica in a circle at every girl. Then, she fired one shell at the ground to keep her in the air, using that momentum to propel herself forward into the shadows.

 _There's nothing there. Is she seeing something that I'm not?_

Ruby's question was answered rather quickly, as the girl somersaulted out of the darkness. She had that same smile on her face, by something else too. Respect?

"I'm impressed, few have been able to see through that trick," she collapsed her sword into a gun, and aimed it.

Without thinking, Ruby used her semblance to get between Yang and the bullet. She drew her cloak up and braced for the hit, falling back when it struck her. Fortunately, since leaving Vale, Ruby had made some upgrades to her outfit, adding a layer of Kevlar thin enough so that she could still use it as a parachute.

"Ruby!" Yang yelled, her temper and crown of flames flaring up immensely. "I'll kill you!"

"Her name's Ruby, is it?" The girl asked, lunging towards Yang with her sword extended.

Yang met the attack head on, grabbing the girl's sword with her bare hands. She ripped it away, throwing it as far as she could, but inexplicably, the weapon flew back into the girl's hand. She beckoned to Yang with her index finger in a 'come hither' motion.

That may as well have been the last straw in Yang's temper. She threw caution to the wind, and ran forward, leaving a trail of flames in her wake. With all of her strength, she threw a hook with her right hand.

It seemed like the girl anticipated it, putting up her hand, and intercepting the punch. She stepped out of the way, and bent Yang's arm until she knelt down.

"You bitch! Let go of me!" Yang yelled, trying as hard as she could to get out in vain.

"Are you going to stop pursuing me?" The girl responded calmly.

"What? You killed my sister!"

"Hmm. Then it seems I have no choice. I'm sorry."

She twisted Yang's arm, and twisted it, dropping her elbow down on the joint with her full force.

That was when Ruby dashed in, grabbing her sister from the girl's clutches. She ran as fast as she could, not stopping until they were safely inside the _Dragon's Den_. Yang's bike would still be where she parked it in the morning.

She moved everything off of one of the least dusty tables that she could find, and placed Yang on it.

"Thanks, Rubes," she seemed calm, despite the fact that her right arm hung limply at her side. "She was . . . stronger than she looked. And for the record, I didn't ask for your help."

"Well, you were all over the place in that fight. And what, I was supposed to just watch you get killed?"

"I could've taken her!"

"Yeah, you were doing a great job from where I was standing."

Yang huffed. "What about you? You took a bullet!"

"Yes, I did because _you. Weren't paying attention_."

"Gee, thanks for the lecture, dad."

Ruby was at a loss for words. She didn't understand where this was coming from. What was Yang really angry about?

"Anyway," Ruby said, trying to move passed that - whatever it was. "Let me take a look at your arm; I learned a thing or two in Mistral."

"No, I think I'd better do it," Yang replied, turning away. She shrugged off her jacket, revealing a silver metal coating on her arm.

 _Wait, that's not right. It's not a metal coat, it_ _ **is**_ _her arm. What happened to her?_

"Rubes, could you hand me that wrench?" She pointed to a toolbox on the supercomputer's keyboard.

"Wh - Why didn't you tell me about this?" Ruby whispered, horrified.

Yang shook her head like she couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Are you kidding me?" She shook with a quiet rage, angry. That Ruby could tell, but she felt as if the anger wasn't directed at her. Yang was just angry. "Dad dies and you just left. You _left_ , Ruby. And you never even contacted me! So tell me: where do you get off acting concerned?"

 _She's right. Maybe if I was here, she'd still have her arm. Maybe I'd still have her trust._

Tears welled up in Ruby's eyes. "I'm so sorry," she whimpered, rubbing at her eyes with the back of her hand. "You have to understand. I - I needed to get away from all of this after dad died."

"That's why you started up your operation in Mistral, right _Erythra_? Oh yeah, and the name's Ravager now."

"You knew?"

"Ruby," Yang sighed. "You're still that naive little girl that you were when we were growing up. The world's been connected for a long time. Of course I knew."

The two were silent for a while. Yang tuned up her metal arm, and Ruby watched. She wanted to learn everything that she could about it, so the next time this happened; she'd be prepared to help. Though, what pervaded her mind was the idea of reconnecting with her sister. This Yang wasn't the same one that she had known, but she loved her anyway. Yang probably loved her too, but achieving the same openness that they had when they were kids would be tough.

"Look, I'm sorry, Ruby. I didn't mean to blow up at you. I really am glad that you're back," Yang said, tossing her wrench into the toolbox. "But, I don't think we're ready to be partners again just yet."

Ruby nodded. "I don't think so either, but we can work our way towards it. Maybe for now, we can try to be sisters again?" She shrugged shyly, not looking directly into her sister's eyes.

Suddenly, Yang hugged Ruby. Fiercely. "I would love that."

* * *

 _When we woke up this morning, I was able to convince Yang to come out with me for breakfast. We went to a little cafe overlooking the docks, one of our dad's favorite haunts. We'd come here after a night on the job, tired, but always ready to eat. They had the best strawberry pancakes in all of Remnant. Believe me, I tried finding better ones in Mistral, but nothing ever compared._

"So, you took down the entire Mistrali triad on your own?" Yang asked, diving into her omelette.

"Well, the local police helped."

"I'm sure, because the police are so helpful," she replied sarcastically. "Isn't that why we exist?"

 _That is pretty much why we do what we do. Outside the law, we can do more than the police ever could._

Ruby took a bite of her pancake, the sweet tartness bringing up old memories. "So, uh, are you going to tell me about that?" She motioned to Yang's right arm.

Yang nodded and cleared her throat, clearly uncomfortable. "Ok."

"You don't have to, sis."

"No, I do. You should know this," she sighed. "You remember that night, right?"

Ruby nodded, wishing that she could forget. After her mom died, the last thing that she wanted was for her dad to die. Instead she was forced to watch as he was gunned down. They were careless that night and paid the price.

"As soon as it went south, you just up and disappeared. And I -" Yang swallowed. "I killed all of those people.

The day after that I had to bury dad on my own. Dad was gone, and you were gone. I was a wreck. Obviously I wasn't thinking clearly, because that same night, I went after the mob. They were an infection, and I wanted to cut them away at the source," she scoffed. "All that I got for my troubles was beaten bloody, and on top of that, my arm wouldn't heal right. So it had to come off.

Luckily, I was, um, using this mechanic girl to vent my frustrations, if you understand," she blushed a little bit, but barreled on. "She had a knack for bio enhancements: metal legs, cybernetic implants, that sort of thing and insisted on helping me out, provided that I paid her in favors."

"What were the favors?" Ruby asked, cocking her head to the side.

Yang sputtered, opening and closing her mouth like a fish. "I - they - um, Ruby I'd rather not explain it."

Ruby laughed loudly. "I'm just kidding, sis. I know what you mean: you gave her protection from the mob."

Yang blinked at her, a small grin appearing on her face. "Yes, exactly that. Anyway, I'm sure you have questions about Torchwick."

"Yeah, I was about to ask. What were you doing in that warehouse?"

"Losing my arm was one of the hardest things ever. The next closest thing was cozying up to that scum. I knew that I couldn't do this alone; the city's too big for one person to cover, so I went to Torchwick. I figured that it would take a gang to stop crime,"

"You started a gang war?" Ruby asked incredulously.

"What? Of course not, I just told him that I would get off his crew's ass if he could help me get other criminals off of the street. The devil you know, right?"

Ruby tried not to judge her sister. The situation that she'd been put in was something that Ruby couldn't imagine.

"Well crime has been down for the last couple of years. Torchwick cleaned the streets, and I dealt with the stragglers and others who wanted Torchwick's slice of the city. I was able to protect him and his. Until last night, that is. Who do you think that girl was?"

"A criminal like all the rest. We have to find her and make sure she never takes another life."

"But it was Torchwick. Who cares?"

"Yang, it's going to have consequences. With Torchwick gone, the other gangs will be looking to add to their holdings. The streets will be bloody."

"Then shouldn't we -" Yang lowered her voice as a waiter passed by. "Then shouldn't we be watching the gangs for any activity?"

"I have an idea," Ruby said with a smile.

* * *

 _We went back to the Den, and booted Tempest up - the supercomputer, her main body. After mom died, dad became a little obsessed with organized crime. He even managed to bug most of their main hideouts. That's where we're starting._

"Tempest, show us any mention in the world of an assassin in black," Ruby said, sitting down in a big leather chair. Yang stood behind her, squinting against the brightness of the screen.

"Certainly, Little Red."

"And change my code name."

"What would you like to change it to?"

" _Erythra_ , please."

"Of course. Welcome, Erythra."

The screen flared up with dozens of newspaper headlines. 'Mob Boss Slain in Own Home,' and 'Leader of Found dead' was among the most common.

"This proves my hunch!" Ruby said excitedly, scanning the screen. "Yang, this girl hasn't murdered anyone who hasn't deserved it. They're mostly crime lords."

"So what?"

"So," Ruby began. "We tail a crime lord, and we can find her."

Yang smacked her palm with her fist. "Stop her before she can hit again."

"Exactly. You protected Torchwick, so I'm assuming you know who the next most powerful crime lord is."

"Junior Xiong."

"I thought he only dealt in clubs."

Yang scratched her head. "Well, yes, and everything that those clubs dealt. Illicit drugs, prostitution, black market weapons, you name it."

"When should we start?"

Yang thought briefly, then put her hand on Ruby's shoulder. "How about tonight? Any time that we waste is time that this girl can use to kill."

 _Wow, wait. Are we working together? I guess the only way we know how to be sisters is through crime fighting. Go figures._

* * *

 _Somewhere else_

"Finally, you've come back to Vale. I've waited for years."

She drew her rapier, firing a magical blast of condensed energy into a picture on the wall.

As it burned, she looked on grimly and donned her helm. "You won't escape."


	4. Origins 3: Springing the trap

**A/N: Hey everyone, thanks for reading and please leave reviews. I know this is a niche story, but I'm hoping that it'll somehow worm its way into your hearts.**

 **1/15/18 I'd like to inform you guys that I'm open for commission. If you're interested, check out .com for more details**

* * *

Harsh, neon lights cut through the darkness, alternating between the image of a bear and a bat. The loud, blaring bass of the club's dance music reverberated within the building and spilled outside onto the sidewalk, where men and women of questionable virtue staggered around, drunk on life and just possibly drunk.

The first and last time that Ruby had been to a club in Vale was during a raid that her father, Taiyang - otherwise known as Sun Dragon, had helped the police to orchestrate. From the shadows of course.

 _Ugh. Just being here makes me want to take a shower. I can't believe that Yang has pretty much lived in these places for the past couple of years._

Although in the back of her mind, Ruby knew that Yang's present situation was, at least in some part, her fault. If she had just stayed in Vale after her father had died, maybe Yang wouldn't be the way she was right now.

Ruby and Yang crouched on the top of a building, still wearing their costumes. They had been watching from the outside for the rush that came with the club opening for the night. So far there was no sign of that woman in black. Although, if she were about to assassinate a gang leader, Ruby would scan the outside building first for any unfriendly eyes first. There was a good chance that they had already been made.

"Ravager, I don't think we're going to spot her from out here," she looked around at the surrounding rooftops. "It's too exposed. If she was here, she's definitely seen us"

Yang nodded. "You're right. I guess we'll have to do this from the inside."

"And how do you expect we do that? There are armed guards out there and I doubt they'd let _us_ in."

"Why do you think that?" Yang asked with a quizzical smile on her face.

"Uh, sis, we're superheroes. Remember?" Ruby fired back snarkily, lifting her cape up to further her point.

"You've obviously never been to a club, baby sis. What did you even do in Mistral?"

"Ugh! I saved people! _Without_ using organized - you know what? Let's just get inside," Ruby exhaled, trying not to say anything that she would regret later.

Yang giggled. "Lighten up, and follow my lead. We'll get in without a problem. Trust me."

And so the duo of heroes climbed down from the roof, and got on line like the civilians around them. That wasn't without consequences as some began to notice the oddly dressed women, and some others even recognized their outfits. However, most ignored them, absorbed in their own worlds. Then, finally, they got to the front of the line where they were finally met by the two bouncers, both clad in black suits. One had a scruffy beard that looked like it hadn't been shorn since before he hit puberty, and the other had a very well - kept handlebar moustache.

"Hey, Jack, get a load of these two," he laughed hard, so hard that his companion began to laugh as well.

"Who are you supposed to be?" The one named Jack asked, his voice deep and menacing.

"Just your average clubbers. Don't you know anything about fashion?" Yang replied, sticking her chin out defiantly.

"Right, because clubbers come in all the time wearing stupid capes, right Geoff?" Jack said, scoffing derisively.

 _Stupid? My cape's awesome. His beard's stupid,_ Ruby crossed her arms, frowning, but kept her mouth shut at the behest of her sister.

"Wait - wait, Jack. I think - no way! Are you Ravager and Erythra?" The other, named Geoff asked, frantically patting the inside of his suit.

"Whoa! Whoa! There's no need for that," Yang said, readying Ember Celica. "You don't want to fight us."

"Fight you? I'm - I mean my daughter's your biggest fan! Could I have your autographs? My daughter'll be thrilled," he pushed a scrap of paper towards them.

Ruby blinked at Yang. Of all the things that could've happened here, this was one of the last things she had expected.

"Uh, sure," Yang smiled awkwardly, taking the paper and scrawling her name over it. "You know, Erythra, since I became Ravager, this kinda stuff's stopped happening. Most people don't understand why I did what I had to," she said aside, handing her sister the piece of paper.

To tell the truth, it had also never happened Ruby any more, but that was because she had kept to herself in Mistral. It was a solitary life, but she had grown used to it. Sure she missed her sister, but, honestly, she hadn't had many friends in Vale to begin with. Although there was someone that she had been meaning to visit if she ever came back.

"Well most people are idiots," Geoff said, his brows set in a hard line. "You're such a badass. Not only did you singlehandedly make the city a safer place for all us little people after Sun Dragon died, you've also inspired so many, like my daughter, to always stick to their beliefs, even through hardship. So thank you."

"Wow, Geoff. That was the sappiest thing that I have ever heard you say," Jack said, shoving a random drunk woman, who stumbled into him.

"Hey, you jerk," she slurred, waving her fists as she walked away crookedly.

"Sorry about that," Geoff apologized, taking the paper back from Ruby. "What are you doing here anyway? Our boss didn't do anything, did he? Because I kind of need this job."

"Well, actually, we're here to help. There may be someone trying to kill him," Ruby said, looking up at her sister, who nodded in approval.

Geoff snapped his fingers. "Oh, yeah! That woman in black, right? I saw you guys fighting her on the news the other night."

"Yeah, that's the one," Yang replied, grimacing at the recent memory.

"Then by all means, come on in," Geoff nodded, removing the velvet rope, which had barred the door.

"Thank you," Yang said, walking into the club.

Once inside, the light and sound become overwhelming, each thump of the bass resonating in Ruby's body. On the topic of bodies, the dance floor writhed and wormed like a single being, each person having exactly one thought on their minds, and expressing it by rubbing on one another in a completely vulgar and primitive manner. It took all the strength that Ruby had not to turn around and leave. Ironically enough, she could jump in the way of a speeding bullet, but couldn't stand a crowd.

 _Ouch my poor ears. I don't understand why people like this. Can't they just meet someone in a bookstore or something?_ She thought, cringing with every pulse of the music,

"Let's make our way to the bar!" Yang yelled, trying to compete with the sound. As it was, Ruby strained herself to hear her sister's voice.

Ruby and Yang wove their way through the sea of people, and as if she were a child again, Ruby gripped Yang's hand. Her sister glanced over her shoulder with a look of surprise, and squeezed Ruby's hand with encouraging warmth, pulling her towards the wall opposite the door.

When they got to the bar, the back of a gruff, stocky gentleman in what appeared to be his early forties greeted the duo. On a second look over, Ruby decided that a word more fitting than gentleman was bully. She had dealt with his type before; the type that decided that they were right as a rule, and used their might in place of reason.

Yes, bully was apt.

The man was busy wiping down a mug, as barkeeps do, and bobbing his head to the bass line of a song that had just begun. In fact, he looked rather happy, Ruby thought, until he saw the two of them. She saw the smile literally drop off of his face.

"Blondie," he spat, his voice muted. "You're here _again_? Can't you just leave me alone?" He shook his head, throwing his hands up into the air.

"Aww, come on Junior. Let bygones be bygones? Can't we just kiss and make up?" She reached over the bar and pulled his head in for a rather chaste kiss on the cheeks.

When he didn't respond, Yang crossed her arms. "Oh come on Junior. Don't tell me you didn't enjoy it," she mewled seductively. The very thought of Yang having anything to do with him romantically sent a shudder through her body. But then again, she was working for Torchwick.

"Stop. Just . . . what do you want?"

Ruby couldn't contain herself any longer, needing to say something before Yang did. She knew firsthand how bad her sister's bedside manners were.

"Um, by now you've probably heard about Torchwick, and -" She began.

"And you think his killer's going to come after me next," he said, cutting her off.

"Yeah, that's pretty much it," Yang replied.

"Well you don't have to worry about me; I've got boys all over the club. If she wants to get to me, she'll have to get through them."

"Junior, we need to talk about that. Your 'boys' aren't all that much if I could take all of them down during my first year on the beat," Yang sat by the bar and pulled an olive out of someone else's martini, crunching into it.

Junior narrowed his eyes at Yang. "What do you want?" He repeated.

"We want to catch Torchwick's killer," Ruby blurted out.

"Then do it. Why do you need me?" Junior asked.

Ruby didn't know why, but as realization dawned on Junior's face, he began to smile ironically.

"You need bait. I'm glad that I'm always needed when you need something, Ravager," he said sarcastically, venom dripping from his voice. "But if you really think you can catch this person, then I'll help you."

 _Did Yang never tell him her name? I guess that makes sense. Hell, if I jilted lovers the way she did when Dad and I were around, I wouldn't want to tell anyone my name either._

Yang smiles, although the look in her eyes says that she wasn't surprised. Obviously, she knew that no matter what, she would get her way.

 _That's another thing that separates the two of us. I don't really have that type of . . . swagger._

"Aww, Junior," Yang said, batting her eyelashes. "I knew we could count on you."

He sighed in resignation, nodding grimly as though he didn't expect to get out unscathed. "Yeah, yeah. Just tell me what to do."

"Nothing, Junior. Just stand there and keep looking cute," Yang said with a wink.

"Ravager, you don't think that this girl would be crazy enough to attack Junior with the two of us acting as bodyguards do you?" Ruby asked, rapidly trying to think of a plan b.

There were just too many factors involved for this to work. What if the woman in black attacked a different gang leader? Ruby wondered. What if she had created a pattern out of nothing?

Then, as if on cue, the lights went out, and the music followed, trailing off until it went dead. Disappointed 'awws' and 'come ons" rang through the clubs as the patrons stood around, waiting for the situation to be resolved. That not happening, they cleared out quickly to find somewhere else to practice their debauchery.

 _Finally, I can hear,_ Ruby thought, cleaning her ear out with her pinky.

"You were saying?" Yang said, leaping over the bar.

Pulling Crescent Rose out of its sheath and keeping it in its rifle form, Ruby steeled herself for a round two against the woman in black. She wasn't going to get caught off guard again.

"Junior, this might hurt, but it's for your own good."

"What do you-" he began, rudely getting cut off by Yang's right hook.

She caught him mid fall and gently lowered him onto the floor beneath the bar. "I'm not the best influence, 'rythra" she deadpanned.

 _I'll say. I can literally think of thirteen ways that I would've done that differently - none of which involving bodily harm to the person we're supposed to be protecting._

For what felt like forever, Ruby aimed down her sight, and swiveled her neck, trying to watch all visible vantage points. A bead of sweat rolled down her cheek - oddly enough. She couldn't remember the last time she had been nervous in the line of duty.

"Ravager?" She called, pulling the sight down to wipe her sleeve across her forehead. "I can't see her- oh!" her sentence was cut off by a projectile, flying towards her quickly.

After years of combat experience, she developed an instinct to use her semblance defensively as well as offensively. She bolted to her left to avoid the attack, but felt something wrap around her ankle, tripping her up. Instead of throwing her arms out to break her fall, she twisted her body, sliding a good twenty feet onto the dance floor.

Then, as if the friction burns weren't enough, Ruby felt a tug on the end of the rope before being flung into the air. As she dangled from the ceiling, she noticed Yang having a rough time too. Her older sister danced behind the bar, her teeth gritted, shifting her weight to avoid actual bullets that were being fired at her - and admittedly doing a poor job of it. Every other bullet grazed her at the least. But oddly enough, it seemed as though the shooter wasn't trying to kill, only play with her, like a cat with its food.

As Yang took a direct hit, her aura flared up, culminating in a fiery crown above her head. She fired Ember Celica into the skylight above, which had a bunch of pinholes just the size of the rounds being fired into the room. "You bitch! I know you're here. Come fight me one on one!"

"Ravager, just get down!" Ruby yelled, not wanting her older sister to get into a fight that she wouldn't be able to win. Fighting angry led to mistakes, though Yang always fought angry. It was just that in this case, her fury seemed more personal than strategic.

 _That won't work. This assassin has had success all around the world, she has enough experience to know when to and when not to walk into an uneven fight._

In that moment, Ruby choked on her thoughts as the mysterious figure in black crashed through the glass of the skylight, bathing her in a cloak of moonlight, which reflected off of all the fragmented glass. Her eyes glowed ghostly amber, their pupils constricted like that of a cat's eye.

 _Wait, is she a faunus? That would explain how she beat us so easily at night._

"Awfully dumb of you to drop in like that miss . . ." Yang trailed, smirking.

The woman in black smiled back. "The name's Nightshade, Ravager. And I wouldn't walk into a fight unless I was confident. Needless to say, I'm _very_ confident," the woman, Nightshade, purred.

At that, Yang grew visibly distressed, as she had never had her skill questioned. All throughout her career in vigilante justice, Yang had been given the due respect that her ability and dedication to her craft warranted.

Yang took a deep breath, finding her center. Like her younger sister, she realized that fighting angry made her strong, but fighting without a clear head made her irrational.

"Big talk. You better put up," Yang taunted, vaulting over the bar and bringing her fists up.

In the meanwhile, Ruby managed to untangle herself from the rope, dropping to the ground with a loud thump. She ran to Crescent Rose, reaching for it when a shotgun slug shattered the ground in front of her.

"Erythra, stay out of this," Yang said, sauntering towards her opponent.

Ignoring her sister, Ruby reached back for her weapon when a bolt of baby blue energy struck it, freezing it in a chunk of clear ice. "Yes, Erythra. Stay out of this," A different, distorted voice said, its sound amplified and spread throughout the club.

 _What the? How many of these guys are there?_

"If you're here for Junior, you're going to have to get in line," Yang replied flippantly.

"I'm not here for Junior. I'm here for Nightshade!" The voice yelled, the sound of a cylinder rotating clicking echoed loudly. "And I'm not leaving until she's dead."


End file.
